New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians Awarded 2021 Leadership in
State Government Advocacy Award

Trenton, NJ –The New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians (NJAFP) was recently honored with the 2021 Leadership in State Government Advocacy Award from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) during the State Legislative Conference. The NJAFP, the largest primary care medical specialty society in the state, is a leader in health care advocacy, improving access to high quality primary care for patients and advancing the specialty of family medicine.

AAFP’s Center for State Policy recognizes outstanding state chapter contributions that further family medicine through legislative accomplishments or public policy initiatives. NJAFP was recognized for its efforts, led by Government Affairs Counsel Claudine Leone, Esq., in advocating for family physician members and their patients during the COVID-19 pandemic through traditional lobbying, social media and public relations efforts, with the goal of ensuring patients could receive their COVId-19 vaccine from their personal family physician’s practice.

Maneuvering through New Jersey’s challenging media market, NJAFP successfully secured 35 media mentions from March 2020 through August 2021, all while highlighting the importance of family medicine and having a regular source of primary care.

“NJAFP members worked tirelessly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and continue to do so, adapting to a changing environment and evolving guidelines while remaining singularly focused on providing quality health care to patients. The desire to be included in the vaccine roll-out stemmed from family physician’s understanding their role as a trusted information source for patients and that personal physicians would be critical in accelerating vaccine efforts,” said Ray Saputelli, MBA, CAE, Executive Vice President, NJAFP.

“Without a doubt, it was the voices of our members and Claudine’s efforts that ultimately led the State to acknowledge the importance of having a personal family physician in a public health emergency and expand the vaccine distribution system to include primary care physicians,” he continued.

About the NJAFP
For more than 65 years, the New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians has been advancing the cause of family physicians and their patients. With more than 2,000 members, including active practicing family physicians, residents in family medicine, and medical students interested in the specialty, the NJAFP is the largest primary care medical specialty society in the state and a chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians. To learn more about NJAFP, visit www.njafp.org.

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